U.S. War Department announced its intention to establish a military training camp that would be capable of housing 30,000 Soldiers. On 6 January 1942, one month after the attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States' entry into World War II, the U.S. War Department announced its decision to proceed with its plan to build Camp Atterbury. Initial land acquisition for the camp encompassed in 643 tracts. The land acquisition cost an estimated $3.8 million ($ in 2022 chained dollars). In addition to the land, the site encompassed numerous farmsteads, the towns of Mt. Pisgah and Kansas (population thirteen), fifteen cemeteries, and five schools. Four of the area's fifteen cemeteries remained intact; the grave sites in the other cemeteries were exhumed and relocated. Initial work at the site began in February 1942. The U.S. Army contracted John Richard Walsh as a real estate project manager to oversee the initial development at the camp that would accommodate and train a full-sized, triangular division of 40,000 Soldiers. Various civilian contractors built the camp over a period of six months from February to August 1942. At the peak of construction in June 1942, there were 14,491 workers on the payroll. An estimated 700 vehicles and daily bus service provided transportation from nearby towns and an on-site concession tent served meals to 600 workers at a time. On 6 February 1942, the War Department announced that the camp would be named in honor of Brigadier General William Wallace Atterbury, a New Albany, Indiana native who received a Distinguished Service Medal for his contributions during World War I. Other names that had been considered were Camp Johnson (for Johnson County, Indiana), Camp Bartholomew (for Bartholomew County, Indiana), and Camp MacArthur (for General Douglas MacArthur). In addition, Camp Atterbury was nicknamed Mudbury during its construction because of its muddy grounds, the result of heavy spring rains during 1942. Official Anniversary Unlike most military installations, Camp Atterbury did not have an official dedication. Six months after construction started, Soldiers began to be unceremoniously transported to the camp to begin training. Instead, Camp Atterbury's anniversary falls on 15 August 1942, when the 83rd Infantry Division was activated. The camp was opened to visitors, and nearly 25,000 Hoosiers watched the opening ceremonies. Camp Atterbury's second anniversary falls two months earlier, on 2 June 1942. Traditionally, Soldiers mark the activation of a post with the day that the first numbered